Pullman council adopts new right-of-way permit code; approves fee schedule with lower insurance requirement

The Pullman City Council voted Feb. 11 to adopt a new right-of-way use ordinance (Ordinance 25-02) and a companion fee resolution (R-06-25) establishing permit types, application and processing fees, and standard insurance requirements for uses of the city's sidewalks and streets.

The ordinance updates a decades-old code and creates three permit classes (type A, B and C) corresponding to short-term events, intermediate uses and long-term or recurring uses such as sidewalk cafés. The council approved the ordinance with an amendment directing staff to develop and return with a formal renewal process by the end of the city’s second quarter.

Council and staff said the ordinance is intended to provide a consistent, citywide process for a wide range of right-of-way activities while protecting pedestrian access and public safety. “We wanted to make it fair for all users of the right of way,” Public Works Director Sean Wells told the council, summarizing the ordinance’s goals.

The accompanying fee resolution sets a standard, time-based processing fee intended to recover staff time for review, inspection and coordination. The fee schedule distinguishes short and long-term uses but, after staff analysis, assigns the same baseline processing amount across permit types because review time was judged similar regardless of event content. The resolution also establishes a repair-and-replacement charge (time and materials) for cases in which a permit holder leaves the right-of-way in disrepair, and an expedited processing surcharge for applications needing action within less than the standard 10-business-day review window.

The proposed fee schedule originally included an insurance requirement recommended by the Washington Cities Insurance Authority (WCIA) of $2,000,000 commercial general liability and, where applicable, $2,000,000 automobile liability. After public comment and council discussion, the council amended the resolution to set the minimum insurance requirement at $1,000,000 across the applicable coverages.

Downtown business owners and nonprofit organizers dominated the public comment period. Several owners urged the council to keep fees and insurance requirements low so sidewalk cafés, events and fundraisers remain economically viable. “These changes are not only financially a burden but also a fundamental counterproductive to this the stated goals of the revitalization project supporting our downtown businesses and community,” Holly Greystone, owner of Greystone Grand Gallery, told the council.

Council members emphasized the legal limits on fee-setting: fees must be defensible as cost-recovery, not be so low as to constitute a “gift of public funds” under the Washington State Constitution, and should be justifiable to auditors. City Attorney and staff advised that any reduction below the documented cost of city processing could present legal risk.

The ordinance gives the city engineer responsibility to administer permits and creates an administrative appeal path that first goes to the Public Works Director and then to a hearings examiner for further appeal. The council instructed staff to return with a proposed renewal process for permits, including any standardized forms or batching procedures that could reduce staff workload on repeated applications.

The council adopted the ordinance and the fee resolution by voice vote. The recorded proceedings show the votes were taken by voice; no roll-call tallies were recorded in the meeting transcript.

The new code and fee schedule take effect once the city completes any implementing steps identified by staff; staff said they will return with a renewal proposal and any additional administrative procedures requested by council.